APUSH Unit 3 part 1

George Washington

1st President of the United States; commander-in-chief of the Continental Army during the American Revolution (1732-1799)

Edward Braddock

A British commander during the French and Indian War. He attempted to capture Fort Duquesne in 1755. He was defeated by the French and the Indians. At this battle, Braddock was mortally wounded.

Peace of Paris

This ended the Seven Years War/French and Indian war between Britain and her allies and France and her allies. The result was the acquisition of all land east of the Mississippi plus Canada for Britain, and the removal of the French from mainland North America.

Salutary Neglect

an English policy of relaxing the enforcement of regulations in its colonies in return for the colonies' continued economic loyalty

Pontiac’s Rebellion

A 1763 conflict between Native Americans and the British over settlement of Indian lands in the Great Lakes area

Proclamation of 1763

A proclamation from the British government which forbade British colonists from settling west of the Appalachian Mountains, and which required any settlers already living west of the mountains to move back east.

parliament

the lawmaking body of British government

The Sugar Act (1764)

The first act that Parliament passed that raised taxes on the colonies. Indirect tax on imported foods from the West Indies. Colonists became so angry that Parliament lowered the duties.

The Quartering Act (1765)

A British law passed by Parliament at the request of General Thomas Gage, the British military commander in America, that required colonial governments to provide barracks and food for British troops.

The Stamp Act

an act passed by the British parliament in 1756 that raised revenue from the American colonies by a duty in the form of a stamp required on all newspapers and legal or commercial documents

Patrick Henry

a leader of the American Revolution and a famous orator who spoke out against British rule of the American colonies (1736-1799)

Stamp Act Congress

A meeting of delegations from many of the colonies, the congress was formed to protest the newly passed Stamp Act It adopted a declaration of rights as well as sent letters of complaints to the king and parliament, and it showed signs of colonial unity and organized resistance.

Sons and Daughters of Liberty

Organizations that led protests, helped American soldiers, instated a boycott, and generally resisted the British.

Declaratory Act

Act passed in 1766 just after the repeal of the Stamp Act. Stated that Parliament could legislate for the colonies in all cases.

The Townshend Act

A tax that the British Parliament passed in 1767 that was placed on leads, glass, paint and tea

Writ of Assistance

legal document that enabled officers to search homes and warehouses for goods that might be smuggled

Boston Massacre

The first bloodshed of the American Revolution (1770), as British guards at the Boston Customs House opened fire on a crowd killing five Americans

Committees of Correspondence

Organization founded by Samuel Adams consisting of a system of communication between patriot leaders in New England and throughout the colonies

The Gaspee

British anti-smuggling ship that ran ashore off Rhode Island in 1772; was burned by colonists

Tea Act

Law passed by parliament allowing the British East India Company to sell its low-cost tea directly to the colonies - undermining colonial tea merchants; led to the Boston Tea Party

Coercive Acts

Four British acts of 1774 meant to punish Massachusetts for the destruction of three shiploads of tea. Known in America as the Intolerable Acts, they led to open rebellion in the northern colonies.

Quebec Act

Signed in 1774, intended to reorganize the way these British territories were governed

Enlightenment

A philosophical movement which started in Europe in the 1700's and spread to the colonies. It emphasized reason and the scientific method. Writers of the enlightenment tended to focus on government, ethics, and science, rather than on imagination, emotions, or religion. Many members of the Enlightenment rejected traditional religious beliefs in favor of Deism, which holds that the world is run by natural laws without the direct intervention of God.

Deism

The religion of the Enlightenment (1700s). Followers believed that God existed and had created the world, but that afterwards He left it to run by its own natural laws. Denied that God communicated to man or in any way influenced his life.

Rationalism

A belief or theory that opinions and actions should be based on reason and knowledge rather than on religious belief or emotional response

Social Contract

An agreement between the people and their government signifying their consent to be governed

John Locke

17th century English philosopher who opposed the Divine Right of Kings and who asserted that people have a natural right to life, liberty, and property.

Jean Jacques-Rousseau

"Social Contract" he explained an ideal society where each community member would vote on issues and majority would become one law.

Thomas Paine

American Revolutionary leader and pamphleteer (born in England) who supported the American colonist's fight for independence and supported the French Revolution (1737-1809)

First Continental Congress

September 1774, delegates from twelve colonies sent representatives to Philadelphia to discuss a response to the Intolerable Acts

Suffolk Resolves

The First Continental Congress endorsed Massachusetts's Suffolk Resolves, which declared that the colonies need not obey the 1773 Coercive Acts, since they infringed upon basic liberties.

Minutemen

Member of a militia during the American Revolution who could be ready to fight in sixty seconds

Bunker Hill

the first important battle of the American War of Independence (1775)

Second Continental Congress

Convened in May 1775, the Congress opposed the drastic move toward complete independence from Britain. In an effort to reach a reconciliation, the Congress offered peace under the conditions that there be a cease-fire in Boston, that the Coercive Acts be repealed, and that negotiations begin immediately. King George III rejected the petition.

Declaration of the Causes and Necessities for Taking Up Arms

Called on colonies to provide troops

Olive Branch Petition

A document sent by the Second Continental Congress to King George III, proposing a reconciliation between the colonies and Britain

Prohibitory Act

Act of Parliament (1775) which removed British protection from the colonies.

Valley Forge

Pennsylvania site of Washington's Continental Army encampment during the winter of 1777-1778

Battle of Saratoga

American victory over British troops in 1777 that was a turning point in the American Revolution.

Absolute Monarch

A king or queen who has unlimited power and seeks to control all aspects of society

George Rogers Clark

Leader of a small Patriot force that captured British-controlled Fort Vincennes in the Ohio Valley in 1779., secured the Northwest Territory for America

Treaty of Paris

agreement signed by British and American leaders that stated the United States of America was a free and independent contry